CLEVELAND, Ohio - Is it possible to capture America's sprawling National Parks in a single image? Colorado-based artist Rob Decker is on a mission to create posters for every one of the 59 throughout the country as part of his National Park Posters project.

For each, he digitally manipulates photographs from his park visits to channel the vintage style of the government's Work Progress Administration-era posters of the '30s and '40s. Of his sales, 10 percent of all proceeds from his go to organizations preserving and promoting the parks.

Last October, Decker spent three days in Northeast Ohio during his first visit to Cuyahoga Valley National Park. He went hiking and traversed the Towpath Trail on bike and foot. Most surprisingly of all, he said, was how close the park was to the city and the airport. It's a reminder that though we may sometimes take it for granted, a National Park is right in Cleveland's own backyard.

Decker researches each park extensively to prepare for his trips. Before he even arrived, he felt that images he had seen of the iconic Brandywine Falls didn't quite encapsulate the true feeling of experiencing it in person.

"Waterfalls attract me," Decker says. "The way it's set up with the viewing platforms, it seemed like people would really stop there and take it in and they were really getting a sense of the valley. Part of the project is trying to capture that iconic shot. That's often the challenge."

Over his stay, he kept returning to Brandywine. His final poster features the lush, sun-streaked green and gold hues of an autumn afternoon and bubbling white of cascading water. Along the skyline it reads: "Discover the winding Cuyahoga River, deep forests, rolling hills and open farmlands."

"As I watched people hanging out on the railing and the benches, it felt to me that this was a part of the park that many people would relate to," Decker says. "It's where you're really getting back to nature a bit. You can kind of close out everything else because you're in this nice little space. This is especially true because other parts of Cuyahoga Valley National Park are much more active - this just seemed like this peaceful spot."

Yosemite memories and road trips across America

For Decker, National Parks are a life-long love affair. Growing up in an urban area just outside of Yosemite National Park, he made his first visit at age six and his family would return regularly for camping and family reunions.

"It just became a special place," Decker says. "As I got older and started traveling on my own, the other parks were logical places to visit. Each of them have their own interesting qualities - whether they're mountainous or have petrified logs. They're all different, they're all interesting and there's always something new to explore and find. Over time, I've really come to appreciate the rich history and vibrant culture that are as much a part of these places as some of the amazing landscapes."

By the time he was 8, he'd embarked on a 10,000-mile cross-country trip to visit five more National Parks. He began photographing them with a Kodak Duaflex camera with black and white roll film.

"I remember the feeling of unwrapping the film and feeding it through - winding it into the camera, and then winding it four or five more times to get to the next frame," Decker recalls. "That was the beginning of that joining of photography and parks for me. It's always been my passion."

From National Parks to poster art

He began the National Park project in 2014 with a series of 10 posters, but the seed was planted a year earlier. For his daughter's wedding, he created table cards, invitations and a poster for the reception in the WPA style. Despite it being her big day, the artwork was getting plenty of attention, Decker jokes.

The WPA was a part of the American New Deal that employed millions of people in public works projects, including the creation of posters that publicized everything from health programs to theater productions.

"Of the posters created, very few were actually for the National Parks," Decker notes. "But there were many that encouraged people to travel and see America. I thought it was great that the government was encouraging people to explore the country and better understand our natural environment. We were making this really positive effort to do things better."

Today, he says, that push is more important than ever. Through his project, he hopes to help engage more people to take notice and interest in national parks.

"If we don't create the next generation of National Park supporters, we're not going to have a voice in government or elsewhere to say we need to protect these amazing places," Decker says.

Thus far, he's created posters for 42 parks, each with its own story of adventure. Such as a year and a half ago, when he drove to Badlands National Park with his son.

"We came in the dirt backroad, around a big sweeping corner, and came across a herd of 200 or 300 bison," he remembers. "We probably stayed there for an hour. It was just one of those sightings of wildlife, that slice that any other day you may not have seen it."

But while his posters are snapshots of scenic grandeur, it's these little moments off camera that remind Decker why he became enamored with National Parks so long ago. And it's a photographer's eye, after all, that doesn't dare miss the dazzle in the seemingly minute details.

"I constantly remind myself to take pictures of the moss on the tree, or a lizard or rocks on the riverbank. These small things are part of the park," Decker says. "They can be just as beautiful as the grand vistas and landscapes."